MTLNOVEL Chapter 286
Chapter 287. Failure is Treason, Success is Revolution (1)
The imperial investigator who came to the Lilian Kingdom in search of the Seven Evil Tribes. Of course, it was completely unexpected news for Rakan.
The Seven Evil Tribes hiding in his own country? Even the strategist, Theor, seemed to be hearing it for the first time.
But the imperial investigator wouldn’t have come without any evidence. They must have come because they had something to find.
“By cooperation, do you mean you intend to ransack this royal palace like a hunt?”
“How could I dare to commit such disrespectful acts? However, the Seven Evil Tribes often parasitize noble families of other nations. Although the Seven Evil Tribes are criminals, their knowledge and abilities are exceptional. They have the power to turn even ordinary families into outstanding ones. For this reason, we intend to investigate only those families whose fortunes have suddenly risen dramatically over the past decade. Ah, you need not worry—”
The imperial investigator, Betty, smiled faintly as she spoke.
“Unlike the empire, which has thousands of families, the Lilian Kingdom has less than a hundred, so the investigation is already complete. We will investigate only seven families. If Crown Prince Rakan assists us, we can finish even today.”
Her tone subtly hinted at the empire’s authority. Then, she handed over a piece of paper. It was a list of the seven families.
Rakan couldn’t hide his displeasure. He snatched the paper and glanced at it.
– Count Inghardt’s family.
– Baron Grimstone’s family.
– Count Blackwood’s family.
– Marquess Oxford’s family……
And at the very bottom of the document—
– …Count Baydant’s family.
“Tsk…”
Rakan clenched and unclenched his fists. Five out of the seven families were subordinate to him.
“If the Seven Evil Tribes are discovered, what happens?”
Rakan’s tone changed. Betty answered without concern.
“We will capture the Seven Evil Tribes if possible, but if deemed impossible, we will execute them on the spot.”
“I don’t care what happens to those beasts. I’m talking about the punishment for the families.”
“Ah, of course, they must be punished, no?”
Twitch.
Rakan’s hand instinctively moved toward the sword at his waist. How could an investigator from another nation so boldly declare they would punish the families of his own country?
“His Majesty the Emperor loves peace. That is why he has always adhered to a merciless punishment principle for the Seven Evil Tribes, who have slaughtered innocent citizens. Moreover, he has stated that even if a family harbors such Seven Evil Tribes, even if they are a duke of the empire, there will be no exceptions.”
“So, you’ll annihilate the families?”
“Unfortunately, no family will be exempt. And it will remain so in the future.”
Rakan glared at Betty as if he wanted to kill her.
Betty didn’t avoid his gaze and instead urged him to respond with her eyes.
At that moment, Theor stepped forward.
“Investigator Betty. It’s good to see you again here.”
Theor bowed slightly to Betty in greeting. Betty accepted it.
“Sir Theor. You, who were once called the incarnation of the war god, graduated from the Clifort Academy and now reside in this remote kingdom. Were you kidnapped or something? Hahaha!”
“Hahaha. You didn’t come here to trouble me because I refused the imperial investigator’s entrance exam, did you?”
“You’re still an amusing fellow. Why not join the imperial investigators now? I’d like to keep you by my side.”
“I’m sorry, but how could a wolf submit to a dog?”
“That’s not a convincing reason.”
Betty glanced at Rakan. Her eyes seemed to question whether he was worth loyalty.
But Rakan remained calm. He only glared at Betty, who had been insulting him since earlier, and didn’t step forward.
This was exactly why Theor liked Rakan.
“In any case, we’ve heard your claim that the Seven Evil Tribes are in our Lilian Kingdom. Is this your first time in the Lilian Kingdom? We’ll provide you with a guide, so why not enjoy some sightseeing?”
“I’ll enjoy sightseeing after finishing my work.”
“The investigation regarding the Seven Evil Tribes will be handled by our royal family. If we find the Seven Evil Tribes, we promise to hand them over to you. Additionally, the punishment for families hiding the Seven Evil Tribes will also be carried out according to the laws of our Lilian Kingdom.”
“Are you defending the Seven Evil Tribes now? Theor. Crown Prince Rakan. Can I interpret Theor’s words and actions as the will of the Lilian Kingdom?”
Betty provoked Rakan, but Rakan remained silent. Theor answered instead.
“If the Sammael Empire is a great nation, then the Lilian Kingdom is a strong nation. We are not a small country that will yield to hastily concocted threats. So, stop testing the prince and let’s have a realistic and productive discussion.”
“…Indeed.”
Betty suddenly changed her attitude and bowed deeply to Crown Prince Rakan. Her posture was even more respectful than when she first greeted him.
“I apologize, Your Highness. I was testing whether Crown Prince Rakan possesses the demeanor befitting a ruler.”
“Displeasing. Even if you are an imperial investigator.”
“I am ashamed. However, what must be done must be done, so the investigation into the Seven Evil Tribes must still proceed.”
Theor quickly interjected.
“We’ve already stated that the investigation and punishment will be handled by the Lilian Kingdom. There will be no compromise on this.”
“This matter will also be reported to His Majesty the Emperor. Can you handle it?”
“The Lilian Kingdom is not a vassal state of the Sammael Empire, so what’s the problem? Rather, it’s unbecoming of a great nation to throw a tantrum when we offer to help.”
“I only hope that what ends as a tantrum doesn’t escalate into something more.”
“You’ve been threatening us all along, so this conversation is going nowhere. Come back in a year. The investigation into the Seven Evil Tribes will definitely proceed.”
“You jest too much. I’ll give you a week. Also, even if you conduct your own investigation, we will monitor it.”
As if there was no room for compromise, Betty straightened her posture.
Theor approached Rakan and whispered.
“I will take full responsibility for the investigator and the Seven Evil Tribes. Please focus on the family war, Your Highness.”
“Hmm.”
Rakan nodded slightly in agreement.
Although the sudden appearance of the imperial investigator mentioning the Seven Evil Tribes was unsettling, there were still things that needed to be done.
He dispatched the 7th Division of the Taesadan to Baydant and sent an official letter inviting Keter, Anis, and Taragon to the royal palace.
At that time, Rakan had no idea.
That all these efforts would be in vain.
Because Daat had already been tap-dancing above their heads.
The city of Talisman, corrupted by the demon realm.
Once the capital of the Adeus Kingdom, this place was now called the demon realm of the present world, a place teeming with indescribable horrors and monsters.
Thud!
Crash!
In this place where melted human-like monsters swarmed, there was a man wielding a giant sword.
His hair was completely white, as if all color had drained away. His left eye was a prosthetic, his right arm a mechanical limb. The middle-aged man, wearing no armor, carried a young girl on his shoulders.
“Kyahahaha! Newbie! Move faster! How are we supposed to meet the Underground King at this rate?”
Every time the man called “Newbie” swung his giant sword, dozens of monsters were torn apart, but the girl seemed dissatisfied and stretched out her hand.
Then, flames erupted from the girl’s hand, burning everything around them, but something was strange. It wasn’t just because the flames were blue.
Although they appeared to be flames, the monsters hit by them didn’t burn but froze instead.
This phenomenon spread like a plague, freezing hundreds, thousands of monsters in the blink of an eye.
“Haa!”
Crackle! Rumble!
When the middle-aged man slammed his giant sword into the ground, a wave of sword aura spread out in a chain reaction.
The sight of thousands of frozen monsters shattering like dominoes was spectacular, but the girl didn’t even look at it, instead playing with the man’s snow-white hair as she spoke.
“Ah, right. Jairo. Weren’t you born in the Lilian Kingdom?”
“Although my family was annihilated, yes, I was.”
“I heard there’s a civil war in the Lilian Kingdom. The princes are fighting, apparently.”
“Is that so.”
Jairo, indifferent to the news of his homeland’s civil war, was busy looking at a peculiar compass to find their way.
“I heard Sephira and Baydant had a big fight. Let’s finish this quickly and go watch.”
Pause.
At the mention of Sephira, Jairo stopped and looked up at the girl’s face.
“Did you say Sephira just now?”
“Huh? Why? Do you know that family?”
“It’s the family where my boss is.”
“Your boss?”
The girl tilted her head, looking incredibly cute, but the words that came out of her mouth were far from cute. No, they were downright chilling.
“What kind of guy dares to make you think of him while you’re with me? Tell me his name. I’ll kill him.”
“His name is Keter. But, even you, Jerry, might find it hard to kill him.”
“Huh? Newbie, are you disrespecting me now? Do you think I bought the title of Ice Empress with money? Fine. Forget the Underground King, let’s go kill that Keter guy first.”
Jerry wriggled her butt in anger. Jairo chuckled, reminiscing about Keter after a long time.
‘Boss. You’re living an interesting life. I’m doing the same.’
Jairo, who went to the Adeus Kingdom, became the champion of the desert arena without relying on the power of the Demon Sword Obelisk.
In the process, he lost an eye and an arm and faced death over a dozen times. But he achieved the realm of a master, which he had longed for.
And that’s not all. He successfully joined Twilight, a guild for those who possess cursed artifacts.
Twilight was indeed well-versed in cursed artifacts. They knew the secrets of their true names and how to handle them.
Thanks to that, Jairo could now stay sober without liquor and gained the strength to easily defeat even a grandmaster.
If he fully unleashed the power of the Demon Sword Obelisk, he could even match a Prime.
‘But I still can’t beat the boss.’
Even without seeing it directly, Jairo knew. Keter must have become much stronger than before.
‘If he were to fight Jerry… I’m curious.’
Jerry is a 7th Circle mage. A mage of ice who freezes everything. How would Keter deal with her? His curiosity was piqued.
Of course, aside from these reasons, Jairo also simply wanted to see Keter’s face…
‘But it’s not the time yet.’
Keter and Jairo weren’t close enough to meet just to see each other’s faces.
‘I wonder how the boss would react if I appeared in a moment of crisis to help—’
Jairo shook his head.
‘But it’s not really a crisis. It’s just the Baydant family.’
Going now would only lead to a fight with Jerry. There’s no point in causing trouble when helping wouldn’t even be enough.
Sigh.
Jairo took out a candy from his pocket and handed it to Jerry.
“Jerry. Eat this and calm down. If we don’t capture the Underground King, Twilight will go bankrupt. I’ll take you to the Lilian Kingdom later.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me. You think you can calm me down with one candy? Who do you think I am?”
“Then two.”
“…Hmph! I’ll let it slide this time. Only because you’re a newbie.”
Having calmed Jerry down, Jairo focused on the task at hand.
Meanwhile, someone was smiling at the exploits of Sephira and Keter.
“Hehehe, he defeated six grandmasters alone?”
The mysterious man seemed to know news that shouldn’t yet be public, as if he was watching it in real-time.
With shining brown skin and golden teeth, he was the ruler of the Adeus Kingdom’s desert, Duke Kundelain, the Desert King.
He gazed intently at a portrait of Keter and laughed heartily.
“Hahaha! You’re doing well, very well!”
His laughter alone made the entire desert tremble.
After laughing for a while, he muttered in a low voice.
“That’s my son.”